Potty Training Your Dachshund

Dachshunds are notorious for not having the best potty habits. That may be due to their stubbornness, but mostly it has to do with their training. It is crucial to get them off on the right start, so begin training on the day you bring your new puppy home. I would also suggest finding out from the breeder of your puppy how they handle potty training in the first couple months of their life. I find that newspaper or puppy pad training works the best. When the puppies first start to become mobile, newspapers are laid out in the whole area where they can move around. Over the next few weeks, decrease the newspaper coverage and they should gravitate to where the papers are. It is best not to use shredded paper or blankets as this could be confusing.

That being said, each dog will have their own idea of where to relieve himself. Think ahead of the when you bring your new dachshund home so that you can guide him to where you want him to go. Some catch on really quickly and others take a lot of work. The most important thing to remember when you are potty training is consistency and scheduling. They are creatures of habit and will keep doing what they are doing until they are forced to do something different.

Here are some tips.
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[li]If he is out of his crate or enclosure, you need to be able to watch him at all times until he is older and trained. Puppies are very quick and do not always give good signals as to when he needs to go.[/li]
[li]If you can’t watch him, he needs to be either in a playpen with a pad inside, in a crate, or in the room you have chosen that it is OK for him to go in (with puppy pads or newspapers available).[/li]
[li]If you see him really sniffing the floor and start to walk in circles, get him to the pad or outside right away. [/li]
[li]You can try putting the pad in front of the door where you want him to go outside. When he goes over to it, take him out right away.[/li]
[li]If you see him starting to “go” where you do not want him to, make a loud sharp noise, like a whistle, clap or a chirp, to startle and interrupt him. Then get him to the pad or outside.[/li]
[li]When he does go where you want him to, give him lots of hugs and kisses and tell him what a good boy he is. You can also save a favorite toy just for this occasion. Treats are OK, but you do not want to give him too many.[/li]
[li]Take him outside to go potty right after he eats or drinks a good amount. It is a capacity issue and if the tummy is full, the bladder will have less room to expand. [/li]
[li]When you are home with him for an extended period, like at night and on weekends, take him outside every 30 minutes until he gets better about going where you want him to. You can increase this time as he gets better at it.[/li]
[li]If he pees inside, wipe it up with a paper towel and rub it on the grass outside. Then encourage him to sniff the grass so that he gets the scent of where he is supposed to go. [/li]
[li]If he pees inside, use vinegar or an enzyme product made for pets to clean the mess. Vinegar breaks down the bacteria and he will not be able to smell where he already went. They like to go where they have gone before and this should discourage him from going in the same place.[/li]
[li]Most importantly, never ever hit or punish your puppy for making a mess. All he needs is some guidance and patience and he will get it. He will not understand why you are so angry with him and it will just confuse him. [/li]
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It takes a lot of determination to properly train your dachshund puppy, but it will definitely pay off in the long run. Would you rather put in a few weeks of consistent training or a lifetime of mopping and carpet cleaning?

If you have any methods that are not mentioned here, please let us know. Any tips are appreciated.

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